Dream Casting: Metroid

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Dream Castingis an imaginative look at the casting process of potential Hollywood projects based on comics and other media. This isn't just about what is being made; this is about what should be made, and who we think should be the stars.

Recently I've been thinking about Nintendo. Their classic game franchises have been around for 25-30 years at this point, and with the rise of nerd-oriented properties as the basis for blockbusters, it seems increasingly weird that there aren't more Nintendo movies.

With that in mind, I've decided to start by imagining a Metroid movie. Like the games, it will focus on Samus Aran, perhaps the first great female video game protagonist. She's a bounty hunter in deep space, on a mission to stop a group of space pirates from weaponizing the parasitic creatures known as metroids. This should be a very visual sci-fi movie, in which very few human beings besides Samus appear, highlighting her isolation as a character. As Samus investigates alien landscapes and structures, she encounters a variety of alien lifeforms on her way to Mother Brain.

Amber Heard as Samus Aran

Amber Heard (Justice League) has the look fans expect from Samus, but she's also a complex and interesting actress, who can carry a movie like this even if she's the only human onscreen for most of it.

Ben Whishaw as Ridley

It may seem strange to cast the voice of Paddington as an evil space dragon, but Ben Whishaw can sound really creepy when he wants to, and his performance can bring nuance to the space pirate leader.

Keith David as Kraid

Keith David (They Live) is a great actor with a perfect voice for playing a giant monster. He'll add to the menace of the space pirates' resident giant.

Phoebe Waller-Bridge as Mother Brain

Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Solo: A Star Wars Story) has a wonderful voice that can be quite biting at times. I imagine her taunting Samus throughout the movie, before her true form is revealed at the end.

Ian Anthony Dale as Adam Malkovich

Ian Anthony Dale (Salvation) will cut a heroic figure as the military commander under whom Samus once served.

Mike Colter as Anthony Higgs

Mike Colter (Luke Cage) will bring his perfect balance of physical prowess and warm charisma to a soldier who goes way back with Samus.

Elle Fanning as MB

MB shouldn't show up until the sequel. When she does appear, Elle Fanning (The Neon Demon) has the perfect unearthly quality to play her.

Katharine Isabelle as Madeline Ferguson

Horror veteran Katharine Isabelle (Hannibal) as a stranded scientist will bring just the right frantic tone to the precedings.